Lord Shiva's servant, a photo from Orissa, East

Photographer's Note

The diary from my journey to India in 1987 has helped me to identify this photo as taken in the 10th century Mukteswar temple in Bhubaneswar, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva.

The Mukteswar (also spelled Mukteshvara) was one of the few temples in Orissa state where non-Hindus were allowed to enter the grounds. The priest in the photo gave me permission to enter one of the several small buildings and agreed to pose for a photo. Almost certainly he did it to receive a 'baksheesh' (tip).

By the way, the building I entered was so dark inside that I could hardly see a thing.

I have earlier showed this priest from another temple in Bhubaneswar:

https://www.trekearth.com/viewphotos.php?l=7&p=1156881

In the WS is a completely unrelated photo, which I post just because I happened to have it. They were both scanned from Kodachrome slides.

ikeharel, Fis2, ChrisJ, johnjmoe, pierrefonds, jhm, jean113, PaulVDV, COSTANTINO, jemaflor, Royaldevon, ktanska, adramad has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ikeharel (106381) 2021-01-16 0:43

Hello Gert,
A very impressive face expression of the man posed for you near the big sculpture (looks as a lion to me).
The WS photo also attractive, those kids must be now in their late 30th. The smaller kid had fun when you took the picture, his humble smile made the picture so attractive.
Wish you a nice weekend,
Ike

pajaran (103677) 2021-01-16 0:47

Pozdrav.
Lep pogled i covek u narodnoj nosnji, dobro pokazano sa lepim bojama, kontrastom i dobrim tekstom.
Dobar rad sa lepim fotografijom u radionici.
lepa fotografija i uhavaceni trenutak, lepo secanje.
Zelim vam lep dan, sve najbolje za vikend.
Paja.

Fis2 (156736) 2021-01-16 0:49

Witaj Gert!
Next curious photos from Your archive.
Man and sculpture make impression.
Excellent shot from daily life.
I like colors of Kodachrome, memories come back.
Have a good weekend.
Krzysztof

ChrisJ (161132) 2021-01-16 1:02

Hello Gert,

The 2 figures of the man at right and the statue at left add symmetry to the composition. Excellent us of a shallow dof with good fg sharpness. Tfs!

lousat (130599) 2021-01-16 2:05

Hi Gert,nice memory from one of the few temples that can be visited by tourists, maybe now things have changed, with tips you can enter everywhere ... eheh .. a perfect photo of this priest who has remained very serious, almost frightened by your camera. Excellent quality also in the WS with the two smiling and happy children. Have a nice weekend and thanks,Luciano

Silvio1953 (206997) 2021-01-16 4:24

Ciao Gert, fantastic portrait with impressive sculpture,fine details, wonderful colors, excellent clarity and splendid light, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

pierrefonds (104458) 2021-01-16 4:44

Hi Gert,

You have captured well the serious expression of the man. The point of view is showing the details of the statue. The light is bringing out the colors. Have a nice day.

Pierre

jhm (203975) 2021-01-16 5:22

Hello Gert,

The man cares for a perfect man model nice sharp with a light blurred background
Colours and presentation are superb.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John

everlasting (18002) 2021-01-16 8:57

a fine portrait of a proud disciple of Shiva. The lion he poses against is somewhat curiously decorated, Good DoF and sharpness

jean113 (22561) 2021-01-16 9:11

Hello Gert, a fine portrait of the priest.
I am unsure from his facial expression as to what he is thinking about having his photograph taken.
The sculpture at his side looks as if it has seen better days!
A lovely picture of the two boys.
Kind regards, Jean.

Tue (83018) 2021-01-16 10:42

Hej Gert,
Et meget godt billede med præsten der står ved siden af den gamle skulptur. I baggrunden kan vi se mange andre fine og rigt bemalede kunstværker.
Lars

PaulVDV (55531) 2021-01-16 11:41

Hello Gert,
Cute kids in the WS, especially the smallest boy.
The man is posing rather seriously for the photo. Good that he puts his hand on the statue next to him.
I often find it particularly difficult to guess the age of such a person you meet. On the other hand, they cannot properly estimate the age of Westerners neither.
Best regards, Paul

jmdias (103906) 2021-01-16 12:46

gert

two shots with different moods, the severity of the old man and the joy of the children. nice pose, indians are so photogenic..

take care

jorge

ifege (33587) 2021-01-16 19:44

Hi Gert
A pair of very different photos today. A battered old statue with a good photo of the baksheesh seeking priest.
A good photo of the 2 boys.
cheers
Ian

COSTANTINO (104999) 2021-01-16 23:01

Hello dear Gert and have a nice day
and a happy new week
every photo of yours is a real
treasure...this one has great interest
too and your notes always help
me to understand what we can see
here...
regards
Costantino

jemaflor (136272) 2021-01-16 23:32

Hi Gert,
a well made portrait of this man, good rendering, interesting presentation and composition with the statue on the left side, tfs.

Royaldevon (76708) 2021-01-17 4:29

Hello Gert,

This is a fine, scanned photograph of the priest who is posing dramatically for you, his arm protectively on the primitive statue. I like the way the two are connected in your photograph, and with the shallow dof, they really dominate the scene.
Those two boys are delightful!
How could you resist photographing them, just because they were there!

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

ktanska (40499) 2021-01-17 9:35

Hej Gert,
He looks really serious! And makes a fun contrast with that strange statue. Those brown details are really surprising. Somehow they remind me of pictures of failed restorations of old paintings.

GyurMaster (21755) 2021-01-17 11:53

Dear Gert,

Another award (or at least a fave) winning photography that would look great on the cover of the NG. I mean it. It is well framed, I like the shallow DOF, the colours of the Kodachrome, but of course the suggestive look of the man, which sells the photo for me. I like the WS too, but in this case it was beyond doubt that this was meant to be the main photo.

Best Wishes,
Gy.

PS: Thank you very much for your kind words under my latest photo! When Eger was taken back from the Ottomans in 1687, the locals tried to tear it down my pulling it with ropes tied to oxen, but unlike its nine counterpart, it proved to be well built. In the end they only changed the crescent to a crucifix. The mosque was converted to a church and later to a hospital. It was torn down in the 19th century. The minaret survived it as well and now it is a local historic monument.

adramad (67600) 2021-01-19 11:21

Hi Gert.
A wonderful photograph, very unusual, because I think it should not be easy to obtain permission from a priest to take a posing photo. I would have been unable just to ask him. It is a great portrait next to that stone monster.
Superb brightness and sharpness management to enjoy the details.
Well seen and done. I like it.
You have a good day.
Very best regards.
Luis.

emka (153354) 2021-01-19 12:44

Hello Gert, Nice view of this Shive servant posing for you in the hope of baksheesh. The sculpture looks very old and primitive. A delightful picture of the small boys in WS.
Best regards Malgo

kasianowak (15980) 2021-01-19 14:55

Great portrait and the priest looks like a professional model (maybe he kind of is, maybe that's how he always earned money). I really like his surroundings too, including the background, out of focus but with the architecture still visible. The WS image is kind of related, even if just as juxtaposition to the subject in the main photo.

worldcitizen (14458) 2021-01-20 14:14

Hello Gert,
This is a lovely portrait; I like the direct look of the priest, and the way he has his hand on the statue. It seems like they were both posing for you. :-) I made a WS to remove some of the blue tint. Take care!

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